Highlights Include World Premiere Ballets by Christopher Wheeldon and Mauro Bigonzetti,the Return of Peter Martins’ Full-Length Production of Romeo + Julietand Susan Stroman’s Double Feature,19 Works by George Balanchine Including Jewels and Prodigal Son, and Seven Works by Jerome Robbins Including The Concert and West Side Story Suite

The Season Will Also Include a Farewell Performancefor Principal Dancer Nikolaj Hübbe,

on Sunday, February 10

New York City Ballet has announced the programming for its 2008 winter season. The season will open on Wednesday, January 2, with George Balanchine’s three-part masterpiece, Jewels, and continue for 57 performances, through Sunday, February 24.

The Company has also announced the date for its Opening Night Benefit, which will take place on Tuesday, November 20, and the annual holiday season of George Balanchine’s The NutcrackerTM, which will run for 45 performances from Friday, November 23, through Sunday, December 30. (The repertory for the Opening Night Benefit will be announced at a later date.) All performances take place at the Company’s home, the New York State Theater at Lincoln Center

Among the winter season highlights are world premiere ballets by Italian choreographer Mauro Bigonzetti, who will make his third ballet for NYCB, and by the Company’s Resident Choreographer, Christopher Wheeldon, who will make his 16th work for the Company. Mr. Bigonzetti, who is the Artistic Director of Italy’s Aterballetto, will create a work to an original score by his longtime musical collaborator, Bruno Moretti. The ballet will premiere on Wednesday, January 23, as part of NYCB’s annual New Combinations Evening, which honors the anniversary of George Balanchine’s birth. Mr. Wheeldon’s ballet will premiere on Thursday, February 7; the score will be announced at a later date.

FULL-LENGTH WORKS

The 2008 winter repertory season will open with George Balanchine’s Jewels on Wednesday, January 2. This full-length abstract work, which premiered in 1967, consists of three parts: “Emeralds”, set to the music of Fauré, “Rubies”, set to the music of Stravinsky, and “Diamonds”, set to the music of Tschaikovsky. Jewels will be given five performances during the first two weeks of the winter season.

The season will also feature the return of NYCB Ballet Master in Chief Peter Martins’ full-length staging of Romeo + Juliet which played to sold-out audiences for two weeks in the 2007 spring season. Mr. Martins’ production, which is set to the classic score by Sergei Prokofiev and features sets and costumes by Danish painter Per Kirkeby, will be performed in repertory for seven performances only, beginning Saturday, January 5, at 2 pm. The run includes two performances which have been added to the winter season schedule: Sunday, January 6, at 8 pm, and Wednesday, January 9, at 2 pm.

The third full-length work of the winter season will be Susan Stroman’s Double Feature, which premiered in 2004. An homage to the silent film era, Double Feature has two acts, each of which tells a different story: “The Blue Necklace” is a melodrama set to the music of Irving Berlin, and “Makin’ Whoopee” is a slapstick comedy set to the music

of Walter Donaldson. The work is one of two ballets that Ms. Stroman, a Tony Award winner for such Broadway hits as The Producers and Contact, has created for NYCB. Double Feature will be performed seven times, from Thursday, January 31, through Wednesday, February 6.

REPERTORY PROGRAMS

In addition to the three full-length ballets, the winter season will include 10 distinct repertory programs featuring a total of 37 different ballets. Each program will be performed three or four times during the course of the eight-week winter season.

George Balanchine, NYCB’s co-founder, will be represented by 19 works overall, including Prodigal Son and The Steadfast Tin Soldier, which were last performed in 2004. The season will also include two all-Balanchine programs. The first, “Balanchine’s World,” features Le Tombeau de Couperin, Tarantella, Bugaku, and La Sonnambula, and the second, “Russian Treasures,” features Serenade, Mozartiana, and Tschaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 2.

The Company’s co-founding choreographer, Jerome Robbins, will be represented by seven ballets, including the return to the repertory of such works as Fancy Free; Ives, Songs; The Concert (not performed since 2002); and West Side Story Suite. During the 2008 spring season, to mark the 10th anniversary of Robbins’ death, NYCB will celebrate its extraordinary Robbins repertory with a season-long celebration of the choreographer and his ballets.

In addition to Romeo + Juliet, the winter season will have five works by Peter Martins, including The Chairman Dances, set to music from the John Adams opera Nixon in China, and Thou Swell, Mr. Martins’ lush and romantic tribute to the music of Richard Rodgers.

In addition to the world premiere, Resident Choreographer Christopher Wheeldon will be represented by four works: The Nightingale and the Rose, which premiered during the 2007 spring season; the return to the repertory of Liturgy, with music by Arvo Pärt; An American in Paris, set to the classic score by George Gershwin; and Carousel (A

Dance), set to music by Richard Rodgers. The season will also include four performances of Russian Seasons, created for NYCB’s 2006 Diamond Project by Alexei Ratmansky, Artistic Director of the Bolshoi Ballet.

NIKOLAJ HÜBBE FAREWELL

On Sunday, February 10, NYCB will present a special farewell performance for Principal Dancer Nikolaj Hübbe, featuring four works that are closely associated with the dancer: Apollo and Western Symphony by George Balanchine; an excerpt from Jerome Robbins’ West Side Story Suite; and Zakouski, which Peter Martins created for Mr. Hübbe in 1992.

Mr. Hübbe is retiring from the stage to become the Artistic Director of the Royal Danish Ballet. His appointment to this position was announced in March 2007, and his official tenure begins in July 2008, to continue through June 2012.

Mr. Hübbe was born and raised in Copenhagen, and he began his dance training at age 10 with the Royal Danish Ballet School, ultimately joining the Royal Danish Ballet in 1986. Mr. Hübbe joined New York City Ballet in July of 1992 as a principal dancer, and during his career, he has performed most of the Company’s vast repertory and has had many works created on him. For the premiere of West Side Story Suite in spring 1995, Mr. Hübbe danced and sang in the role of Riff. He has appeared regularly with the Royal Danish Ballet and as a guest with many companies throughout the world.

In addition to his performing career, Mr. Hübbe is a faculty member at the School of American Ballet (SAB), the official school of New York City Ballet, and he has staged August Bournonville works for NYCB, SAB, the National Ballet of Canada, Ballet Arizona, and the Royal Danish Ballet.

TICKET PURCHASES

Tickets for George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker™ range from $20 to $120 and are currently on sale by mail and through the NYCB website at www.nycballet.com. Beginning September 24, tickets will also be available at the New York State Theater box office, and through Center Charge at 212-721-6500.

Beginning August 6, winter season subscription series will be on sale through the NYCB website. As of August 10, subscription series will also be available by mail and by phone from the NYCB subscription office at 800-580-8730.

Tickets for the Opening Night Benefit will be available beginning September 24 by mail, through Center Charge, through the NYCB website, and at the New York State Theater box office. Tickets range from $20 to $100 for the performance only, and are $200 for the performance and cocktail party. Tickets for the cocktail party, performance, and supper ball are $1500 to $3500 and will be available through the Special Events office at 212-870-5585.

Single-ticket orders for the winter repertory season and for Opening Night will be accepted by mail and through the NYCB website beginning September 24. Single tickets will also be available beginning November 19 at the New York State Theater box office and through Center Charge. Single tickets range in cost from $20 to $98.

New York City Ballet’s 2008 spring season will open on April 29 and continue for nine weeks through June 29. The season will honor Jerome Robbins, to mark the tenth anniversary of his death. Programming will be announced at a later date.

The New York State Theater is located on the Lincoln Center Plaza at Columbus Ave. and 63rd St. The mailing address for the NYCB Box Office is New York City Ballet, New York State Theater, 20 Lincoln Center, New York, NY 10023. For general information on tickets for any New York City Ballet performance, call

212-870-5570, or visitwww.nycballet.com.

Major support for new work is provided by The Irene Diamond Fund and members of the New Combinations and Repertory Funds.

The revival, refurbishment, and presentation of works by Jerome Robbins, particularly those works that have been absent from the repertory, is made possible in part by a lead grant from The Jerome Robbins Foundation.

Support for Bright Sheng’s work as Composer in Residence with New York City Ballet is provided by the New York State Music Fund.

The creation and performance of works by Peter Martins is funded in part by an endowment gift from the Solomon family, given in loving memory of Carolyn B. Solomon.

New York City Ballet’s performances of works by George Balanchine are supported in part by the Balanchine Production Fund, an endowment created through The Campaign for New York City Ballet.

Peter Martins’ Romeo + Juliet was created with support from Mr. and Mrs. Howard Solomon, the Joseph and Sylvia Slifka Foundation Inc., the Mary P. Oenslager Foundation Fund of the New York Community Trust, Mr. and Mrs. Frank A. Bennack Jr., Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence Herbert/Pantone Inc., the Fan Fox and Leslie R. Samuels Foundation, Inc., Marlene Hess and James D. Zirin, Mr. and Mrs. Stephen A. Schwarzman, John L. and Barbara Vogelstein, Franci Blassberg and Joe Rice, The Honorable and Mrs. Earle I. Mack, The Norman & Rosita Winston Foundation, and contributors to the New Combinations Fund.

New York City Ballet gratefully acknowledges the Lila Acheson and DeWitt Wallace Endowment Fund, which provides support for new work and audience development.

New York City Ballet’s programming is also made possible in part by grants from the LuEsther T. Mertz Charitable Trust, The Shubert Foundation, The Starr Foundation, contributors to the Repertory and Education Funds, and public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts and New York City Department of Cultural Affairs.

American Airlines is New York City Ballet's preferred airline.

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On Sunday, February 10, NYCB will present a special farewell performance for Principal Dancer Nikolaj Hübbe, featuring four works that are closely associated with the dancer: Apollo and Western Symphony by George Balanchine; an excerpt from Jerome Robbinsâ€™ West Side Story Suite; and Zakouski, which Peter Martins created for Mr. Hübbe in 1992.

Mr. Hübbe is retiring from the stage to become the Artistic Director of the Royal Danish Ballet. His appointment to this position was announced in March 2007, and his official tenure begins in July 2008, to continue through June 2012.

Mr. Hübbe was born and raised in Copenhagen, and he began his dance training at age 10 with the Royal Danish Ballet School, ultimately joining the Royal Danish Ballet in 1986. Mr. Hübbe joined New York City Ballet in July of 1992 as a principal dancer, and during his career, he has performed most of the Companyâ€™s vast repertory and has had many works created on him. For the premiere of West Side Story Suite in spring 1995, Mr. Hübbe danced and sang in the role of Riff. He has appeared regularly with the Royal Danish Ballet and as a guest with many companies throughout the world.

In addition to his performing career, Mr. Hübbe is a faculty member at the School of American Ballet (SAB), the official school of New York City Ballet, and he has staged August Bournonville works for NYCB, SAB, the National Ballet of Canada, Ballet Arizona, and the Royal Danish Ballet.

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For the ballet travellers among you, why not make it down earlier to see Miami City Ballet's own revival of Jewels before NYCB starts with the same ballet in January? It's always good to have a basis of comparison.

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Which of the all-Balanchine programmes would be most recommended for NYCB novices? I am thinking Jewels, because the other two seem either too much of the same (the Tchaikovsky) or too over-loaded (the third one).

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The Tchaikovsky progam is distinguished by its all-masterpiece fare. Not so the "World" program. Both Tombeau (which I consider a gem, but is rarely given its due preparation, even by NYCB standards ) and Bugaku have their detractors, but the second program does offer a wide variety of mood and genre, which for a ballet novice might not be discernible on the Tchaikovsky program.

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This raises an interesting question. Most of us would love this sort of program, but does the beginner -- or the average ticket buyer -- have the patience, stamina, and passion to focus on ballet at its highest level of aspiration for an entire evening? What, no Rodeo?

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This raises an interesting question. Most of us would love this sort of program, but does the beginner -- or the average ticket buyer -- have the patience, stamina, and passion to focus on ballet at its highest level of aspiration for an entire evening? What, no Rodeo?

bart, in my case - and I'm sure I'm not the only one - I have so few opportunities to see a company like NYCB that I need to ensure that it will be 'worth my while'. I know that in many respects this goes against the grain of BT and it definitely goes against my grain. My feeling is that Jewels is a failsafe option. That may not be the most exciting way of going to the ballet but it's the most realistic.

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I actually think the Tchaikovsky program has a fair amount of variety in mood and choreography--it's not like the program is Allegro Brillante, Theme and Variations, and then Piano Concerto Number Two. Mozartiana is meditative and intimately scaled while Piano Concerto Number Two is more extroverted and grand (riffing on Petipa) and Serenade is as poetically and musically suggestive a ballet as has ever been created: the dancing for the corps de ballet offers something like an idealized image of an essential 'esprit de corps' and even, at times, friendship, while other sections of the ballet include images of profound isolation and loneliness. Unless one has a very limited taste for Tchaikovsky's music, I would say this is a great program. I also think Serenade is about the most 'sure thing' ballet I know as it can be terrific even in a second-rate performance though it may only be transcendent in a first-rate one. My memory of Jewels is that without great performances it is decidedly less than great Balanchine, but, I will add that either program will be well worth anyone's time and it's a rare NYCB performance that does not have some excellent dancing.

(Bart: my experience taking NYCB 'novices' to see the company is that they usually appreciate great choreography as much as the most ardent ballet fan though poor performances and/or great ones can make a difference to their reactions.)

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I see there is no easy definitive answer. I will let you know what I chose of course when I report back.

I don't know if you're specifically looking to subscribe, but personally I don't buy subscriptions but wait for the casting lists to make sure I get the ballets I want with the casts I want. And I usually get good seats doing it that way. To me, the season doesn't look super-exciting, but that's mainly because there are a lot of re-treads of things I've seen recently. The two ballets not seen last year that I most want to see are Goldberg Variations and Prodigal Son.